The Quiet Concert: April 2015

April 2015 Recap

Nicole Read

Ashley Read

April Favorites

Nicole's Pick

Ashley's Pick

April Reviews

What's New With Nicole

I AM DONNNEEEEE with school. Well, mostly. Technically I still have one weekend class in July before I am officially done but that will be easy peasy in comparison. April has been a pretty crazy month because of finals (2 papers, 4 presentations, and an exam) but that's all in the past and I have what are shaping up to be 4 amazing months ahead of me. I've been stalking the Tone It Up community and am like 99% set on joining. Once I have money to spend I will probably take the plunge and exercise and nutrition will become my new obsession (after reading and blogging of course). We shall see! I'm just excited to have free time again! Oh, the possibilities!

What's New With Ashley

April was a nice and relaxing month for me. My college roommate came to visit for a weekend and we went to see Wicked, it was FANTASTIC. I love that show! The husband and I have decided to start an herb garden, we both love cilantro and use basil a lot so we figure why not try to grow them on the deck. We shall see how it goes haha I do not have green thumb. I have also started taking Barre classes, ballet inspired fitness classes, they have been awesome so far. Its a light impact class but still challenging workout. And lastly, I have been enjoying the warmer weather :) I have been reading outside when I can, so I cannot wait for May when its just a bit warmer!

Wild Hearts by Jessica Burkhart

Title: Wild Hearts
Author: Jessica Burkhart
Series: If Only... #4
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA Childrens
Release Date: May 5, 2015
Source: ARC received from publisher in exchange for an honest review (thanks Bloomsbury!!)

Summary from Goodreads:

Brie Carter's father's land development business has taken her family all over the world, but as soon as they arrive at their new home in Lost Spring, Wyoming, the town turns out to protest. They don't want a new hotel if the resident mustang population will be displaced or hurt as part of the deal. Then Brie meets Logan, a gorgeous local who has a special connection to the mustangs, and she is immediately drawn to him . . . and the horses. However, with Logan's father leading the protests and Brie's father refusing to budge, it's clear that their parents are heading towards an all-out war. Can Brie and Logan find a way to save the mustangs and be together? Or is their love doomed from the start?

Review

My biggest problem with Wild Hearts was the writing. The flow and storytelling itself was not the greatest – it lacked depth and everything was just too easy - but it was the dialogue that really got me. These characters spoke in long winded sentences that were way too mature and considerate to feel natural. I couldn’t get past it.

My next biggest problem was with the characters. I didn’t connect with Brie or Logan, who were both a little dull. There was a certain cowboy lure to Logan but I didn’t completely buy into it. And since I didn’t care either way for them, I didn’t care either way for their relationship. It lacked passion and I didn’t feel what connected them. I guess you could say it was cute on a very superficial level, but that is about it. Otherwise, it was too vanilla.

I liked the Country aspect – which was what initially drew me to this book – and I did get into the story of the Mustangs – Logan and Brie saved them from an “uncertain future” and hosted a great event to raise money to care for them - but there was still something lacking here. Drama? Tension? Feels? I don’t know. It saved the book from being a total bust but it didn’t overcome the rest of my issues with it.

Honestly, all of my problems circle back to the first one – the writing. It was subpar in my opinion and that impacted how I experienced everything else. I haven’t read any of the other stories in the If Only series, so I can’t say how this one compares, but I imagine that they were better than this.

Top Ten Books Which Feature Characters Who Our Coblogger Should Meet

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week's Top Ten list is
"Top Ten Books Which Feature Characters Who Our Coblogger Should Meet"

Nicole's Top Five (for Ashley)

1. Tamlin and Feyre from A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas

Ashley loves retellings and she FINALLY started reading the Throne of Glass series and is enjoying it so naturally ACOTAR should follow!

2. Kell from A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab

Ashley has not yet read anything by Victoria Schwab and what better place to start that with her most recent masterpiece.

3. Aurora and Niklaas from Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay

Another retelling that I think Ashley will love, plus she already read and loved Of Beast and Beauty.

4. Simon from Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Ashley doesn't read a ton of contemporary but I am pretty sure that she will fall in love with Simon just like we all did!

5. Jubilee and Flynn from This Shattered World by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner

Because Jubilee and Flynn are way more awesome than Lilac and Tarver and Ash just needs to read this book already!

Ashley's Top Five (for Nicole)

1. Johanna and Rafi from The Story Spinner by Becky Wallace
Nicole loves awesome fantasy stories and handles multiple storylines and POVs like a champ so I think she would love meeting these two characters.

2. Eleanor from Something Strange and Deadly by Susan Dennard
While I know Nicole strongly stays away from zombies, I think she would enjoy this historical fiction, Eleanor is a proper lady at times but is also not afraid to break the rules.

3. Beth and Jennifer from Attachments by Rainbow Rowell
These two friends have awesome emails back and forth, I know Nicole loved Fangirl so I think she would love to meet this dynamic duo.

4. Elliot from For the Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund
The writing in this one is beautiful and since Nicole liked These Broken Stars I definitely think she would like Elliot

5. Rachel from Defiance by C.J. Redwine
Crazy dystopian book with a rockstar powerful female lead, I think Nicole would really enjoy the setting and Rachel's strong nature.

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